Of Wisdom Teeth and Bro Hugs
by SabbyStarlight
Summary: Mac has his wisdom teeth removed and Jack is the one tasked with taking care of him after. Hurt/Comfort, Fluffy, Whumpy goodness


"I need a favor." Mac asked as he and Jack were walking towards the parking garage, the older man in an even better mood than usual.

"Other than me driving you home since Bozer is working late in the lab?" Jack replied, bumping his shoulder into his partner's with a teasing grin.

"Yeah actually." Mac replied, bumping Jack back in return.

"Hey, you heard Patty in there. We have two weeks off! Two whole weeks! When was the last time we had a two week vacation? Whatever you need just name it, hoss." Jack answered distractedly, digging into his pocket for his keys.

"Hoss?" Mac repeated with a laugh. "You're Texas is showing, Jack."

"I am proudly flying my Texas flag all the time, Mac. You should know that by now. Seriously though, whatcha need?" He asked as he the patted the hood of his pickup truck the way a normal person might greet a dog that was happy to see them.

"It's actually about those two weeks off." Mac began as he clambered up into the passenger side and found his seat belt then waited to continue until Jack was buckled into his own seat and the familiar roar of the diesel engine began exiting the parking garage. "I'm kinda the one who requested them." Mac admitted.

"Since when do you request time off?" Jack asked excitedly as he turned into the traffic heading towards Mac's place. "You have big plans? If those plans involve women and booze I am SO in. Wait, is that what the favor is? You need a wingman?"

"What? No. Jack, no to all the above." Mac insisted, rolling his eyes at his friend. "I requested a two week medical leave."

"Medical leave." Jack repeated, sending a questioning glance toward his partner before changing lanes. "What for?"

"I'm having my wisdom teeth taken out Friday." Mac said. "As in, day after tomorrow, Friday. That's what the favor is. I need you to drive me there and back. Boze was gonna do it but Thornton has him working overtime getting acquainted with the lab. So if you don't already have plans…"

"Wait, wait, wait. Hold up. You still have your wisdom teeth? Aren't you supposed to have those removed when you're, like, twelve?" Jack asked incredulously, not able to wipe the amused smirk off his face.

"Seventeen. Or around then." Mac answered embarrassed, not meeting the older man's eyes.

"And you didn't because…?" Jack inquired.

"I just never got around to it. Didn't wanna miss school. And it's not like they bothered me."

"Okay, you were a giant nerd even back then. I get that. But after?" Jack prodded.

"I worked through the summers, then I was in college and I didn't wanna miss any classes there either. Then the army. Then DXS. And I always felt stupid asking for medical leave for something that wasn't an issue. They never hurt so I didn't see the point." He explained.

"Until now." Jack clarified.

"Right." Mac said with a relieved sigh, hoping to move past the subject. His hopes were dashed however when Jack slid to a stop at a stop light, hitting the brakes a lot harder than he normally would have in his own truck, and spoke again. "How long?"

His voice was calm, and to most people it would have seemed like Jack's normal demeanor, but Mac had been working with Jack Dalton long enough to recognize the darkness in the timbre of his voice. The tension between the knuckles of his hand on the steering wheel. He was mad, and an angry Jack was not something that Mac ever wanted to be on the wrong side of.

"How long what?" He asked innocently, hoping that playing dumb wouldn't make the situation worse.

"How long have they been bothering you?" Jack asked slowly. Never taking his eyes off the road in front of him and hitting the gas pedal hard the second the light turned from red to green.

"They don't. Not really." Mac placated.

"Yeah I'm gonna call bull squirt on that one." Jack announced. "I just sat here and listened to you tell me that you never wanted to take em out since they didn't hurt. And you like doctors and needles and all that jazz about as much as I do so I know you wouldn't just voluntarily up and decide to let someone cut some teeth from your skull for the fun of it. So fess up. How long?"

Mac knew that there was no point in lying to his partner so he conceded. "Honestly they don't hurt most of the time. Occasionally though they flare up. I had a dentist appointment a few weeks ago and he noticed. Said I needed them out or it would just keep getting worse. I didn't think it was that big of a deal."

"Damnit, Mac!" Jack slammed his palms against the steering wheel. "How many times do we have to have the talk about you telling me when you're hurt? And don't start in on how this wasn't a work thing so you didn't say anything because you know that doesn't matter. I don't care what it is, it involves you. I watch your back, that's my job, and it's a twenty-four seven gig!" He took a breath and turned to look at his partner sitting beside him. "You have to tell me these things, man."

"I did. Just now." Mac answered quietly, looking like a kicked puppy.

"Before they happen, Mac." Jack insisted. "I mean, until Bozer couldn't chauffeur you around were you even gonna tell me?"

"Of course I was gonna tell you! I was just gonna wait until the surgery was over." Mac admitted.

Jack pointed a finger towards his partner as he turned onto the road leading to Mac's place. "That. That right there, Mac, is what I'm talking about."

"Okay, okay, you're right. I'm sorry. I should have told you." Mac conceded. "Can you take me or not?"

"Of course I'll take you. A chance to see you all hopped up on surgery-grade pain meds? I wouldn't miss that for the world!" Jack chuckled. As Jack pulled his truck into the driveway Mac found himself wondering if he should have taken his chances with asking Riley.

Early Friday morning Mac found himself once again climbing into the passenger's seat of Jack's truck. The older man looked over at his partner in amusement, taking in his sweat pants, fists shoved in the pocket of his hoodie, and hair still damp from the shower. He looked exactly like an angst-ridden teenager, which Jack found appropriate for the occasion.

"Nervous?" He asked with a grin.

"Just want it over with." Mac answered not meeting Jack's eyes.

"You remembered you weren't allowed to eat anything before, right?" Jack asked, trying to keep the conversation flowing. "Cause I'm not gonna have you blowing chunks in my truck."

"Haven't eaten since last night." Mac assured him.

"Good. Now do you know where we're goin'? Cause I don't have a clue where this place is."

"Next exit and then a left." Mac said and the rest of the ride was silent except for his occasional directions until they pulled into the parking lot of the oral surgeon.

Mac got out of the truck with a sigh and headed towards the building, Jack following close behind.

They sat in the waiting room for three whole minutes before Mac's leg started nervously bouncing up and down. Seven before he started tugging the zipper of his hoodie up and down making a sound that was driving Jack crazy and nine before Jack dug a fistfull of paperclips out of the pocket of his jeans and tossed them to his partner. "Here. Make a tooth or something."

Six paperclip teeth later a nurse came out and called Mac back. He turned around surprised when Jack stood up to follow him. "Oh I'm going back there with ya. Never know, you might get scared, need to hold my hand." Jack said with a wink. Mac rolled his eyes but didn't protest.

Once Mac was settled in the dental chair, Jack took up residency leaning against the wall across from his partner, arms crossed, keeping watch. "Right or left handed?" The nurse asked. "Right." Mac and Jack both answered her.

She smiled at the two men. She didn't know exactly what their relationship was but due to the overprotective nature of the older man she was leaning towards thinking they were brothers even though they looked nothing alike. "I'll get your IV started in your left then." Mac nodded and found himself smiling through the pain when Jack winced even harder than he did as the needle pierced the skin of his hand.

"Alright, you're all set." She announced as she finished adjusting the IV lines leading up to a bag of fluids hanging above Mac's shoulder. "Give those about five minutes and you should be out like a light." Mac nodded again, making a conscious effort to keep his hands still even though his fingers ached for something to keep them occupied. "And you can stay until he falls asleep," The nurse said, looking at Jack apologetically. "But after that you'll have to go out into the waiting room."

"Yeah I figured." Jack answered, not even looking at the woman, all his attention focused on the blonde man in front of him. He didn't even notice when she left the room.

He pushed off from his stance leaning against the wall and made his way closer to his partner, placing a resisting hand on the knee that was bouncing up and down in the chair. Mac had been so focused on keeping his hands still that he hadn't even noticed his legs compensating for the unnatural lack of movement.

"Dude. Chill out." Jack insisted. "I thought you said you weren't scared?" The teasing glint in his eyes was tinted with a shade of concern.

"I'm not." Mac automatically responded until he saw the knowing smirk gracing Jack's lips. "Shut up." He closed his eyes and went back to trying to hide any nervous ticks.

"Hey look at it this way," Jack started, placing a comforting hand on the younger man's shoulder. "If you really think about it, between the two of us today you got the easy job."

"Please explain to me how letting some stranger slice open my mouth and cut bones from my skull is the easier of our two jobs? Driving? Or surgery? Yeah I'm pretty sure I win this round."

"No. Not when you think about it. Cause all you really have to do is just lay there and take a nap. You won't know anything is goin' on. I'm the one who has to sit out there in those uncomfortable waiting room chairs for hours, bored, back aching, worrying that maybe they call 'em wisdom teeth for a reason and once they take those suckers out of your head your brain won't work any better than mine and we'll be out of a job." Jack teased.

That got Mac to smile. "When you put it that way I guess you're right. But man, after is gonna suck, isn't it?"

Jack smiled back and looked at his watch. "Maybe. But we'll cross that bridge when we get to it. Now the real question is why are you still awake? It's been ten minutes and she said you would be out in five…" He looked down at his partner. "You're fightin' it aren't you?" He asked already knowing the answer would be yes. 

"Not on purpose." Mac argued around a yawn. "But every time I feel like I'm close to falling asleep my brain kicks into panic mode."

"Survival training will do that to ya." Jack admitted. "But you gotta go to sleep, kid. Sooner you do, the sooner it'll be over."

"Yeah." Mac agreed, closing his eyes again. They hadn't been closed more than a few seconds before they snapped back open in panic. "You'll be here when I wake up, right?" He asked, the drugs flooding his system making his voice sound just as young as he looked in that moment.

"I won't go anywhere, buddy." Jack said with a fond smile.

He didn't exactly keep that promise but Mac never had to know that. Once Mac finally fell asleep he left the room once the nurse came and ushered him out and then he took the prescriptions that she handed him for antibiotics and low-dose pain meds, ran to the nearest pharmacy and he waited around until they were filled so he wouldn't have to drag a drugged up Mac there after his surgery. Then he returned to the dental office and read through the patient care instructions that had been given to him with the prescriptions and waited. And then waited some more.

Finally, two hours and thirty six minutes after he had been forced to leave Mac sleeping in the dental chair, the same nurse came into the lobby, this time asking for Jack.

"He alright?" He asked anxiously.

"Just fine." She assured him. "Everything went great. He's ready to go whenever he feels like it." She continued as they headed down the hallway towards Mac's room.

"Hey Sleepin' Beauty!" Jack said as he made his way over to Mac's chair.

"Hey, Jack." Mac tried to smile but with his mouth numb he wasn't sure how well it worked.

"How ya feelin?" He asked

"Fine. Can we get out of here?" He asked through the gauze in his cheeks.

"Yeah, whenever you want. Think you can walk to the truck?"

"They took my teeth, Jack. Not my legs." Mac retorted as he slowly stood up from his chair.

Jack had to admit he was a little disappointed to find that Mac appeared perfectly normal. He had been hoping for crazy, higher than a kite, I'm-totally-recording-this-for-blackmail-material-later, antics. What he found was Mac, slightly swollen cheeks packed with gauze, eyes a little glassy but still able to focus, voice hoarse, but perfectly coherent. Jack was glad the surgery had gone well but he still had been hoping for some funny videos to send to Riley and Bozer later.

They made it to the truck without incident and Mac was asleep, face pressed up against the window, before they even made it back on the interstate. Once they made it back to Mac's house Jack woke him with a gentle hand on his shoulder. "Hey buddy. Home sweet home."

Mac opened his eyes slowly and looked around the cab of the truck. His hand, bruised from the IV, came up and rubbed at his stiff neck from sleeping against the window.

"Hurtin'?"

"Nah. Just tired. A little dizzy." Mac answered.

"Well let's get you inside, huh?" Mac nodded as he left the truck, staying close to Jack's side as they walked up the drive because the dizziness seemed to get worse the longer he remained standing.

Once inside Jack deposited Mac safely on the couch and headed towards the kitchen. In the fridge he found an entire shelf of foods Bozer had picked up or made specifically for Mac's recovery. Yoghurts, jello, puddings, and applesauce were stacked beside bowls of mashed potatoes, soups, and pastas with carefully written reheating instructions taped to each lid.

"Hey you want somethin' to eat? Boze left enough soft, chewing-not-required foods in here to feed an entire nursing home for a week." When he didn't get an answer he went into the living room, only to be greeted by the lovely sight of Mac pulling squares of bloody gauze from his mouth.

"That is officially disgusting." Jack informed him. Unphased by the glares Mac was sending his way, he continued. "Seriously, dude. Gross."

"Shut up." Mac said once the last piece of gauze had been removed. "No food. I'm gonna go crash for a few hours." He said, as he headed towards his room. "Make yourself at home." He added, almost as an afterthought.

"I always do!" Jack yelled from the kitchen, where he had returned in search of a beer. "Hey you just yell if ya need me, alright?"

"Yup." Mac answered before closing his door

Jack expected the younger man to sleep for a few hours, but those few hours turned into six before Mac found himself slowly making his way down the hallway and collapsing pathetically into the closest chair he could find.

"How ya feelin?" Jack asked, muting the cooking show he hadn't really been watching and making a conscious effort to try not to say anything about how Mac's cheeks were beginning to swell.

"Hurts." Mac practically whined. "Really freaking hurts."

"I'm sorry, bud." Jack said, truly meaning the words. "Why don't you eat something and take a couple pain pills. Then you can go back to bed if ya want."

"No food." Mac insisted, attempting to work up the energy to reach for the bag from the pharmacy on the coffee table. Jack snatched it before Mac even moved, knowing what Mac was thinking before he even acted on it as any good professional back-watcher would.

"You know better than trying to take those on an empty stomach." Jack scolded. "And while I didn't want you puking in my truck, I REALLY don't want you puking up blood and tearing stitches and all the other fun stuff that happens when you combine vomit and oral surgery." Food first." He said and Mac knew there was no point in arguing.

"Fine." He conceded and Jack nodded as he stood, returning a few moments later with an orange jello, spoon, and blue Gatorade.

He watched as Mac slowly took tiny bites of the jello, not missing the way that he seemed to wince a little more each time the spoon passed his lips. The blonde made it halfway through before setting the jello cup back on the coffee table and holding his hand out expectantly for the promised pain relief.

Jack handed him the pills and twisted off the cap of the Gatorade before handing it to him as well. Mac tossed back the pills and chased them down with a swig of the drink, failing to hold back a whimper as the cold liquid hit his incisions.

"I know it sucks," Jack soothed, "But try to eat a few more bites of jello and drink some more of that before you go back to sleep."

Mac conceded to one more spoon of jello and one more painful swallow of the sports drink before officially giving up on food for the evening. He leaned his head against the back of the chair and closed his eyes but made no move to get up and make his way back to the comforts of his bed.

"Go to sleep man, you look beat." Jack said as he reclaimed his spot back on the sofa.

"No point." Mac answered. "Hurts too bad. Can't sleep. Not till those pills kick in at least."

"You wanna try an ice pack? They sent some home with us." Jack said, thankful that he had thought ahead and put them in the freezer as soon as they came home.

"Can't make it any worse." Mac shrugged, which Jack took as confirmation.

"Here." He said a few moments later, reaching two ice packs, each wrapped in a kitchen towel, out to Mac. The younger man took them with a sigh and hissed as he placed the cold against each side of his face.

"Keep em there for a while, it'll help." Jack promised.

Mac tried, he really did, but after holding the ice packs up to his face for what couldn't have been more than five minutes, his arms were shaking with exhaustion. He threw the still frozen ice packs onto the coffee table in frustration.

Jack glanced over at his friend in sympathy. "I'm just drained." Mac explained, seeing Jack's eyes on him. "No strength, no energy. I feel like I just ran a damn triathlon and I have literally done nothing but sleep all day."

"No, you had surgery. That's allowed to affect you, kid."

"Yeah well I didn't think having a couple teeth pulled would take this much out of me." Mac admitted. "I'm hurting, and miserable, and this just sucks." Mac closed his eyes and leaned his head back against the chair cushion. If Jack didn't know that it would lead to him falling victim to Mac's wrath once he was back on his feet he would have sworn the kid was pouting. He decided to give him a pass though since he had to be in some serious pain for him to be admitting it.

"Alright. C'mere." Jack said, reaching down the couch and grabbing a throw pillow and the ice packs off the coffee table.

"What?" Mac asked, cracking open one eyelid.

Jack placed the pillow on his lap and put one ice pack on top of it. "Come lay down." He ordered, patting the pillow. "Lay on your side, on top of one ice pack and put the other one on the other side." Mac was looking at him with confusion. "Look man, you're hurtin' and ice will help. Also it will help keep the swelling down and to be honest you're kinda starting to look like a chipmunk over there." Now Mac was shooting daggers from his blue, pain filled, eyes.

"You said yourself that you couldn't sleep, but there's no point in you sitting over there wallowing in misery. So come over here and lay down. Watch tv with me for a little while and then when you feel like it you can go back to bed."

Mac gave in, slowly making his way over to the couch and made himself comfortable practically curled up in Jack's lap. Jack carefully laid the second ice pack on the side of Mac's face and held it in place as he unmuted the television.

An hour later Mac had been lulled to sleep by the quiet television, relief from the combination of ice packs and pain pills, and Jack's hand gently carding through his hair.

He woke up a few hours later, unsure of what time it was because he had taken his watch off before his surgery and hadn't cared enough to put it back on once he got home. It was dark outside though. He was still laying on Jack, fully thawed ice pack squished beneath his cheek which was beginning to ache again. At some point while he was asleep Jack had covered him up with the blanket that was always folded up on the back of the couch. He must have moved then, because Jack began stirring.

"You a'ight?" He heard the older man ask sleepily from above him.

Mac sat up slowly. "I'm fine." He assured.

"Hurtin' 'gain ain't cha?" Jack asked through a yawn and Mac found himself quickly remembering that Jack's accent got even thicker when he was tired.

"A little. Not too bad."

Jack reached his arms above his head and cracked his neck in a stretch, waking himself up more. "You will be if you don't get it under control now. Feel up to some food before your next round of meds?"

"Actually," Mac said, surprising even himself. "I'm kinda hungry."

Jack grinned. "That's a good sign. Whatcha say to a late night carb-feast and some Netflix?"

Mac smiled and then winced as the movement sent pain throughout his jaw. "I'm in."

Ten minutes later they had settled back on the couch, Mac with a plate of mashed potatoes and Jack with a bowl of pasta that should have been enough to feed three people with normal appetites. "Hey man, thanks. For doing all this." Mac said, leaning to bump his shoulder into Jack's.

"Any time, brother." Jack replied as he slung his arm across Mac's shoulders in a casual bro-hug. "Takin' care of you is my job."

"Yeah well most people don't take their jobs this seriously." Mac countered.

"I wouldn't have it any other way, kid. I wouldn't have it any other way."

 **MacGyver fic number three: Complete!**

 **I'm not really sure where this came from. I'm still working on that long promised Hurt!Jack fic, but every time I start to make some progress on it I get this idea for some Mac whump and I just can't get back to hurting our man Jack until I get the idea out of my head. Seriously I was writing about Jack, a hurt elbow, and a Cortisone shot and somehow my brain went "Cortisone shot=needle, needle=IV, IV=surgery, surgery=wisdom teeth... MAC!." And a few hours later Jack's elbow was forgotten and I had four thousand plus words of Mac having his wisdom teeth removed. But I'm actually pretty happy with it! Let me know whatcha think! (And happy holidays!)**


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